It gives me great pleasure to introduce our new limited edition collaboration with Parmigiani Fleurier, an incredibly elegant Tonda PF named “Serenissima Due”. Following the sold-out success of the original “Serenissima” back in 2022, we have brought an update to the much-loved salmon dial Tonda PF to celebrate 20 years of Revolution: our signature star printed on the date wheel, in place of ‘20’. The familiar stainless steel case and platinum fluted bezel, with its svelte 40mm x 9.7mm dimensions, returns in the same ergonomic form, complete with the supple integrated bracelet that collectors have come to know and love.

There is something you can do with a Parmigiani Fleurier Tonda PF that you can’t do with any other integrated bracelet, sports chic watch on the market: You can undo its deployant buckle and let the bracelet dangle in an open position. You can then rotate your wrist 90 degrees back and forth. Miraculously, the watch stays exactly in place without shifting or sliding off your wrist. That’s how brilliant it’s creator Guido Terreni’s focus on unparalleled ergonomics is.

To be fair, he’s already had a lifetime’s worth of experience playing a key role in the creation of Bulgari’s revolutionary Octo Finissimo. So when it came to the Tonda PF, he knew exactly what he wanted to accomplish.

Terreni explains, “The result has been one of the greatest success stories in modern watchmaking. More than that, it has completely turned around the fortunes of the technically brilliant but once-struggling Parmigiani Fleurier. Terreni’s Tonda PF brings four major achievements to the forefront for the brand.

Major League Achievements

The first is total perfection in terms of proportion and balance. The watch is 7.8mm in thickness, a result of it being driven by the brand’s ultra thin PF703 micro-rotor caliber. Couple that with a 40mm diameter, it is an absolute masterpiece from a design perspective. The lithe Constantin Brâncuși profile, contrasted with the sculptural muscularity of the watch, is one charged with dynamic energy. The Tonda PF feels alive and in motion while most other watches feel static and dormant.

Secondly, it boasts the greatest focus on ergonomics for any modern integrated bracelet sports watch. The reality is, the vast majority of these watches feel flat, so when they are attached to a heavy steel or gold bracelet, they have a tendency to shift on the wrist like a bangle. The Tonda PF, because of its intense attention to following the form of the human wrist and the way its flared lugs curve to conform to this shape, fits better than any other watch on the market.

To me, not since Louis Cartier elongated and bent his Tank to create the Tank Cintrée in 1921 has there been a watch that has paid so much attention to human morphology. The result is that the Tonda PF is a watch you’d want to wear all the time.

Says Ahmed “Shary” Rahman, famed collector and former GPHG jury member, “It’s funny, but when I come home and I’m feeling tired and want to relax, I’ll put my Tonda on my wrist because it just feels so good.” Likewise, when I write articles, I almost always take my watch off and put it on my desk because I’m otherwise too conscious of it. The one exception is the Tonda PF.

One major part of the watch’s magic is the way in which the lugs are flared and curved, meaning that they are positioned at the very extremity of the watch head and they then flow perfectly into the bracelet to create a seamless compound curve that just hugs the wrist.

Guido Terreni’s third achievement regarding the Tonda is the creation of an all-new, immediately identifiable design language that has become the DNA of Parmigiani Fleurier: Terreni has made the brand the King of Subtlety. Everything about the Tonda is about nuance; there is nothing about the watch that shouts. Indeed, if the Tonda PF were a person, it would be one who speaks softly with the most educated sense of eloquence.

The signature grain d’orge guilloché on the dial is so small that it turns invisible in certain light. This pattern is hand-crafted into each dial. Says Terreni, “I pushed our team to make a pattern as minute as possible to convey a sense of modernity to a finishing usually seen as old fashioned. Actually, we even came up with a pattern smaller than this, but when we fitted the sapphire crystal to it, the pattern became totally invisible.”

Similarly, the fluting on the platinum bezel is so minute that it almost begs to be examined under a loupe. But when viewed with the naked eye, you experience an intense rush of visual richness, even when you are not certain where it is coming from. That’s the beauty of the Tonda PF; it’s so filled with subtle details that you discover more of them each time you wear the watch. Another example of this is the mirror polishing applied to the inner flange of the flared lugs. Cast your eye over every detail of the Tonda PF. Look at the quality of finishing of the hands and the indexes — you’ll find that every element is perfect.

The Sunset Shade

The “Serenissima Due” harkens back to our original 2022 release of the same shade. That timepiece, which we named “Serenissima,” was inspired by the sunrise over the Adriatic Sea in the Gulf of Venice. That watch on the wrist resonated with an infectious sense of optimism befitting a timepiece with a dial inspired by a new dawn breaking.

For the PF collection, he was profoundly inspired by Le Corbusier and his color keyboards, first created in 1931. The architect believed in the harmony of colors and the way they affect space and mood. From there, Terreni began to experiment with just the right shade and eventually arrived at a color that makes me think of Botticelli painting the first light rising over the Gulf of Venice, at the north of the Adriatic Sea. As I often go for runs at daybreak when in residence at La Serenissima, I am very familiar with this golden rose hue. Terreni has captured this perfectly, so much so that “Serenissima” or in English, “Serenity,” christened both the original and current release.

For Revolution’s 20th anniversary, we’ve brought back this cult favorite shade, but this time with a slight twist. As the 19th day of the month passes, the date wheel flips into the Revolution star elegantly printed in monochrome, in place of ‘20’. The “Serenissima Due” marks the start of a year-long celebration of Revolution’s second decade — a milestone moment we’re proud to share with Parmigiani Fleurier.

This is to me the perfect timepiece in that, thanks to its extraordinary ergonomics, it is blissful to wear. From a design perspective, it is representative of an all-new sports chic icon — and with this colored dial, a beacon of joy, energy and triumph.

Tech Specs: Parmigiani Fleurier x Revolution Tonda PF Micro-Rotor “Serenissima Due”

Movement: Self-winding caliber PF703; 48-hour power reserve
Functions: Hours, minutes and date
Case: 40mm x 7.8mm; polished and satin-finished stainless steel with platinum knurled bezel; water resistant to 100m
Dial: Salmon; rhodium-plated applied hour markers; Revolution star on date wheel in place of ‘20’
Strap: Polished and satin-finished stainless steel bracelet
Price: CHF 24,300, excluding taxes
Availability: Limited and numbered edition of 20 pieces